Getting Past The Fear
by Roxius
Summary: After a narrow encounter of near-death on the battlefield, Seven contemplates the idea of making more use of her free time and confessing her feelings to another female member of Class Zero. Seven X Deuce. shoujo ai. please R & R!


Disclaimer: I do not own Final Fantasy.

A/N: I know it's not the most original story, but I sorta just came up with this without much planning aside from the whole 'do what you want to because you can die any time' thing. Too bad neither character in this story is playable in the demo though. Plus without much info their personalities were kind of hard to put together. This is what I get for writing something like this about a game that isn't even out yet, though.

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><p>Seven stared intensely at the reflection in her bathroom mirror. She could see the look of fear in her eyes, and it made her sick to her stomach.<p>

'I could have all died...'

Only a few, brief hours ago, the young silver-haired woman had been participating in a rather gruesome mission. Even though Suzaku Magic Academy had been able to push back the military forces, they had still suffered many casualties. Seven was one of the few members of Class Zero who had been sent onto the scene. All around her she could hear the screams of the fallen, and the revolting stench of their charred bodies roasting on the ground. Bullets were flying at them in every direction. The grass she walked on was stained bright crimson, courtesy of the blood that had been spilled.

She had experienced many battles since the war began, but never had Seven come so close to losing her life that day. She had been trained extensively to keep one's emotions under control when fighting, and losing composure could easily result in your own death as well as the deaths of your teammates. They were ordered to remain focused at all times. However, that didn't mean that they were impervious to sorrow or guilt or even fear. After all, they were still just teenagers. The damage they suffered was more emotional and mental than physical, and no amount of Cure magic was capable of healing that.

'If Queen hadn't shown up at the right moment...if that missile had been a few seconds faster...I wouldn't be standing here right now. I would be buried six feet underground out in the cemetery garden. Or worse...'

Seven splashed a handful of water on her face. No one could get rid of their fear, so they had no choice but to simply ignore it. They had to look beyond the horrors of war, and towards their unified goal of becoming the country's Agito. However, that meant being able to survive until the very end of the war, whenever that day might come, if ever. It was the most difficult task of all.

Who's to say that when the time comes that any one of them would truly be willing to become a martyr instead? No one seemed to doubt their own convictions, but it was still too early to tell just yet. It all had to do with focus, determination, and a little bit of forced ignorance to block out the impending terror. It let them draw out a hidden strength for the sake of survival. Unfortunately, sometimes they accidentally let their guard down.

'Ugh...what am I going to do? I need to get a hold of myself! My hands won't stop shaking! I got to keep fighting, for the sake of our country! I can't back out!' She kept yelling at herself like an enraged couch berating a failing player.

The near-death experience Seven went through was so different from anything else, though. It made her feel fear for the first time in ages. It made her consider putting more thought into what she did with her free time, when she wasn't acting in field missions with the rest of Class Zero. She usually spent most of it by training, as did the others. Sometimes she liked to read or take walks, but in the end she would always return to training. She could die at any moment while on a mission, and yet she never made use of what could be the last days of her life. Seven wasn't doing anything for herself.

'Maybe...I should try to get it off my chest...and tell her...'

At that moment, Seven's thoughts shifted to one of her fellow classmates. A beautiful, young woman named Deuce. Despite herself, Seven could feel the heat rising in her cheeks as an image of Deuce's cheerful face formed in her mind. As if on cue, her hands finally stopped shaking. Her heart continued to beat fast, however, but it was now for a completely different reason. Seven couldn't deny that she was deeply infatuated with the other girl.

Before joining Suzaku Magical Academy, Seven had never even fathomed that she would fall in love with another woman, much less anyone at all. Much to her digress, she never spent much time with Deuce at all, but the moments that she did, and learning more about the other girl's personality, just drew her deeper and deeper into the feelings of her heart. Deuce was loyal to the her duties almost to a fault, but she was incredibly kind and caring despite the tragic circumstances that surrounded everyone's lives. It was hard to believe that she was actually a well-trained killer, especially considering her choice of a flute as a weapon.

Deuce had protected Seven several times before with her powerful defensive spells, and it was thanks to her that the more brash members of Class Zero were still alive and kicking. She was one of the more popular girls at school, almost as popular as Seven herself. She was someone who you could trust with your very life. What Seven took much notice of was that Deuce never mentioned a boyfriend of hers, or even having one at all. Seven had no idea if Deuce was actually straight because of her apparent chastity, but taking into account the statistics of straights versus gays, it was very likely.

Although Seven was in love with Deuce, she never made any effort in the idea of actually confessing her feelings. She was almost thoroughly convinced that her friendship with Deuce could be ruined if she told her, and that it might be something better saved for once the war was at an end. After suffering such a shock in the last mission, Seven's regards on this topic had taken a drastic change.

If she could die any day, she might as well fulfill the hidden dreams she had always neglected to do back when life had seemed more simple. Sadly, she no longer had 'all the time in the world' to waste standing idle and letting it pass her by. She had to get this particular desire off of her chest once and for all.

She was going to confess her love, and regardless of Deuce's reaction, Seven would continue fighting for the sake of becoming the Agito.

'I just hope she doesn't end up hating me afterward...' Seven sighed.

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><p>It did not take as long as Seven had initially expected to locate Deuce. The brunette was standing outside of the main school building, just a little further past the large mountain in the center of the school grounds. There weren't many students out and about at the time, which helped calm Seven's nerves a little. The last thing she wanted was to upset Deuce in front of everyone. As she drew steadily closer to the girl of her affections, she took notice that Deuce was busy conversing with a male student from one of the other classes. She was still too far to make out what they were saying.<p>

Seven abruptly came to a stop. That same queasy feeling in the pit of her stomach was starting to come back. She tried to push back the tiny doubt in her mind that told her that this man was possibly Deuce's boyfriend. She countered this doubt by telling herself that he could just as easily be a friend of hers. After all, she had friends like Ace and King in Class Zero, and she certainly wasn't dating either of them. For a brief moment, Seven felt like she had won, but then the doubt came back.

The main problem was that this man wasn't a member of Class Zero at all. In fact, Seven wasn't sure she had ever seen his face before. It had been some time since she last spoke with Deuce, and she may have gotten a boyfriend during that absence of communication. There was no way to tell except ask her out-right. Seven felt the urge to hit her head against the stone fountain; since when had she let herself become so paranoid and stupid?

'It's just nerves, I'm sure...I need to focus myself on the objective, like I always do...' she mentally told herself. It made her oncoming confession a little less scarier by imagining herself in battle, ironically enough.

She watched in silence, clear discomfort etched across her face, as the pair continued to chat for the next few minutes. Deuce actually giggled once or twice. Finally, the young man stood up, bid Deuce a quick good-bye, and left. It wasn't until Seven made sure he was completely out of sight that she approached Deuce. Seven put on the nicest-looking smile she could muster.

"Hello, Deuce,"

Deuce turned her head around to look up at Seven, and she soon returned the smile with one of her own. "Seven...it's a pleasant surprise to see you. It's been a while, hasn't it?"

Seven nodded. "Yeah, it has. I was finally given a short break after fighting in Concordia for almost a whole month. Let me tell you, that place couldn't be any more freezing. If we're not dying by fire-breathing monsters, then we're dying of frostbite."

"Really? I just got back from the Lorcian Alliance. Our forces have really been going through tough times over there! There doesn't seem to be any end in sight! Sice is still fighting there at this very moment!"

"You don't say? It was the same with me; our enemies are relentless. Unfortunately, alot of men and women have been killed already. I really wish I could do more to help save them."

Deuce stared blankly at Seven for a few seconds before her head drooped slightly. "Yes...me too..."

Seven mentally cursed herself for causing their conversation to get into such morbid topics right from the get-go. She was going to need to change the subject, and fast. She needed to carefully work her way into what would be the right moment to come out and confess her love. What would happen after her confession wasn't something she could worry about just then, either.

"...Do you know when you'll have to leave again?" Deuce suddenly inquired. Seven thought she looked adorable even when she was worried.

"Uh, no, I haven't heard anything yet. I rarely get this much time off, though. What about you?"

Deuce shook her head. "Me neither."

"I'm glad. I'd much rather be back at the academy with everyone safe and sound than risking our necks fighting some awful war like this."

"Heh...you have a serious face most of the time, but you're really very sweet, Seven," Deuce chuckled.

Seven failed to keep herself from blushing in response to Deuce's comment. "W-Well, it's only a natural way to feel, isn't it?"

"Yeah, you're right about that, I guess. Still, you're usually considered a cold and very stoic compared to the rest of us, at least according to the rumors I've heard. I'm glad to know that you're not really like that in person." Deuce reached out and placed a gentle hand upon Seven's shoulder. A slight chill shot up Seven's spine.

"I'm...I'm sorry we haven't been able to talk more often because of our missions,"

"You don't have to apologize, okay? We're getting to know each other right now, aren't we? The only other members of Class Zero who have returned so far are King and Nine, but I'm not sure where they've gone off to. I'm happy to talk with my fellow classmates. I like getting to catch up with my other friends too, like Fen, you probably just saw hanging out with me before."

"Yeah...I know what you mean..." Seven felt greatly relieved that the boy she saw earlier was just another friend of Deuce's, and not her boyfriend.

Deuce absent-mindedly brushed a lock of hair behind her ear as she started to bring up a question that had been on her lips since the start. "So was there something else you wanted to talk to me about? I'm usually the one who's approached you to chat, aren't I? If you're having any problems, I'm happy to help!"

Seven's relief was suddenly and violently twisted into anxiety. It didn't seem like she'd be able to prolong the inevitable much longer, after all. It was now or never. Whether this would work out well or completely destroy their friendship was the big question, and as much as she feared the answer, Seven wasn't someone who would willingly back down just because things got 'difficult'. She stared deeply into Deuce's beautiful, bright eyes to summon up the courage she needed.

"Deuce, I wanted to tell you, just in case we don't survive this war...that I'm in love with you." Seven prepared herself for whatever would come next.

Deuce's eyes nearly bulged right out of their sockets after hearing this unexpected revelation. "What? You're in love with me? Seven, are you serious...?"

"Yes, I am. I wouldn't have any other reason to say something like this unless I was one hundred-percent serious!"

"I see. That's...that's rather surprising," Deuce fidgeted nervously in her seat, which Seven quickly took as a sign that she needed to reassure the other girl that she didn't have any ill intentions about this. She was beginning to understand that fighting soldiers and gigantic missile-firing robots was far easier for her than trying to speak intelligently to her crush. Deuce was just as dumbfounded, but for obviously different reasons.

"I know it came completely out of nowhere, but, since we're fighting in a war, I...I just had to finally tell you, in case anything happens to me later on. I wanted you to know how I felt about you. That's the real truth of the matter,"

"Oh, Seven..."

"I won't hold it against you if you don't feel the same way, because I still want to be your friend at the very least, but I have to know if you are able to return my feelings at all." Seven forced herself to look Deuce straight in the eyes, mentally praying that the words she hoped for most would come out of Deuce's mouth. She didn't want to look so pathetically desperate, but she just couldn't help herself. She was afraid, after all.

"Seven, I," Deuce paused for a moment to take a breath, "I...hold on a moment...you're really sure you love me?"

"I'm certainly attracted to you, at the very least."

"You know, I've never dated another woman before, or even thought about it. You're the first girl who's ever confessed something like this to me...!"

"Heh, loving a woman didn't cross my mind until I came to this academy, either."

"Well...since it's best to not be left with any regrets before going to battle, then maybe..."

The brunette wrapped her fingers tightly around Seven's, put on a faint smile, and leaned in close to whisper her answer.

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><p>Staring outside of a window on the academy's fourth floor, secretly spying upon the two girls from above, was Queen. She gave a gentle push on the bridge of her glasses to keep them from slipping down her nose. The fountain statue stood in the way of her view of the two girls, but she could still tell something was happening by the ruffling of Seven's cape. As class president, it was her duty to watch over her classmates and make sure that they did not waver from their duties too much. It was a responsibility she took very seriously.<p>

Unbeknown to Seven, Queen was actually well aware of her infatuation with Deuce, thanks to some great intuition and a little bit of snooping. She wasn't precisely sure how she felt concerning the idea of two women dating, but if it made Seven and Deuce happy, then it was probably for the best.

"Hey! Just how long are you going to keep watching those two?" barked a voice from behind her.

Queen threw a glance over her shoulder to see Nine walking up behind her, his hands buried deep in his pockets, a scowl on his lips.

"I'm just keeping an eye on my fellow classmates, that's all."

"Tch, you're full of it! I bet you secretly get off on this kind of thing, don't you? You're one of those straight girls that like watching other girls hook up with each other!"

"...Why can't you ever stop talking?"

"Hey, I'm just calling 'em as I see 'em! I'll be in the bathroom if you need me."

Queen refused to respond as his footsteps gradually faded away; she really hated it when he was right. She would never outright admit to such a thing, however.


End file.
